Black Creek Bistro - Restaurant Week

If dinner were a card game with gambling involved, Black Creek Bistro will see your four-course vegetarian meal and raise you local sourcing. The provenance of the produce at this Parsons Ave. bistro is exceptional considering many of the fruits, veggies and herbs come from the owner of the restaurant's farm.

Black Creek Bistro has a great menu for vegetarians during Restaunt Week. And since you can imagine from how close the ingredients came, it makes the experience that much more pleasurable.

The chili relleno was a fiery delight. It had substantially greater heat than I am accustomed to from the dish, but the spiciness added another layer to a great first course. The pepper was stuffed with queso fresco that melted to the consistency of cream cheese. The chili relleno was prepared with a vegetable ragout that added notes of tomato and onion to the dish, and a basil leaf garnish. Definitely consume this with a glass of water.

There is also a sqaush au gratin available as a first course option. However, I decided since the vegetarian main course also is made with squash, I was starting with the chili relleno.

All three salads were vegetarian. There was a spicy pickled giardinera mix and a Bistro salad.

I, however, decided on the heirloom beet salad. The foundation of the salad was a delicious pickled beet that supported a green and red lettuce (arugula or endive...I'm terrible at leafy vegetable identification), onions, red and yellow tomatoes, chevre, feta cheese, cucumber ratatouille and crushed pepper.

The tangy elements of the cheeses and beets were a perfect match for the bounty of taste in the vegetables. The tomatoes were magnificent, and the ratatouille acted as a flavorful dressing for the dish. The onions were crispy and judiciously applied.

The vegetarian entree is the Black Creek squash, which is served with vanilla-infused Ohio watermelon and cantaloupe, peppery shoestring zucchini and carrots. The melon flavors are savory, providing a great contrast to the smoky grilled squash and the zucchini and carrots. I could have eaten a trough of the melon, but the synergy of the ingredients worked exceptionally well.

The vegetarian dessert is a melon granitas. It is a light dessert with flavors of lemonade and watermelon. I was mildly disappointed that it didn't taste more like the melon side component to the third course, but nonetheless, it was a nice conclusion to the meal.

The bread was fairly average quality, although the butter was obviously artisanal. The beer and wine lists feature Ohio selections (an extensive series of Great Lakes beers, and Firelands Gewürztraminer, respectively). The beverage options also include national and international beers and wines from places other than Ohio.

Many of the wines come at state minimum pricing when purchased by the bottle and are reasonable priced. Trophy hunters can also order Gaja Super Tuscans or Rogue Imperial Stout if they are so inclined. Cocktail drinkers also appear to have some tasty looking options.

Black Creek Bistro is a great destination for locavore diners. And they did a damned fine job with vegetarian options for Restaurant Week, too.

Black Creek Bistro-Restaurant Week